Parks in Keswick

Located between the town centre and Derwentwater, Hope Park's beautiful garden make it a favourite place to visit en route to and from the lake. There is plenty of seating where you can just relax and watch the world go by. It also offers traditional games and a cafe.

Just a few minutes stroll from Keswick Market Square Fitz Park has a riverside setting with glorious open views towards Skiddaw and Latrigg and is an ideal spot for picnics. The Lower Park has a large open recreational area, cricket pavilion and fantastic children's playground aswell as a multi use games area and BMX track. The upper park is a smaller formal area with bowling green, grass tennis courts and and putting green and an arboretum. For enquiries about opening hours of the games at Fitz Park tel 017687 73445.

Don't miss a visit to Whinlatter Forest, England's only true mountain forest. It is located just up the hill from the village of Braithwaite just outside Keswick. There is a wonderful adventure playground laid out as a trail through the forest where children can explore the natural evnvironment. It includes an archimedes screw, secret doors in trees and a series of pulleys to move millions of little pebbles. Whinlatter is home to a number of graded walks and cycle tracks. You can take your own bike or hire one there from Cyclewise. For those over ten there's treetop adventure withGo Ape, a high level jounrey along bridges, and zip slides 40 feet high in the air.

Crow Park

Crow Park is a wide expanse of grass owned by theNational Trust located between Derwentwater, Theatre by the Lake and Hope Park. It has far reaching views over the lake to one side and to Skiddaw in the other direction. It's a great place to run around or fly a kite though be aware that there may be sheep grazing there at times. It is home to events such as the Keswick Mountain Festival and the Derwentwater Regatta.